The Botany of Desire Page #9

Because of that one particular

molecule it makes

That gets people high.

Its name is thc,

and it was discovered

Back in 1964

In a lab in jerusalem

by chemist raphael mechoulam.

Cannabis had not

been well investigated,

Which was strange -- after all,

it was being used

Illegally or legally

by millions of people.

And yet we didn't know

that much about it.

So I thought, it's a good idea

to look at it again

From a modern point of view.

In the lab,

mechoulam and his colleagues

Broke cannabis down

and zeroed in

On the chemical components that

might be causing its effects.

We isolated

about 10 compounds.

Surprisingly, out of

the 10 compounds we isolated,

Only one --

Which now is known as

Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol,

in short, thc --

Only one causes

the well-known high.

We tested it in humans --

many of my friends.

And we saw that the compound

is effective,

As we expected it to be.

The identification

of thc answered one question,

But raised another --

just what did it do

To the brain?

I had always assumed

That people knew

how marijuana worked.

It surprised me, actually,

when I began

Looking in the research

literature, that --

That it was really clear

That no one really knew

how it worked.

In 1988,

allyn howlett found the answer.

She discovered that,

deep inside the brain,

Thc molecules activate

a previously unknown network

Of specialized

chemical receptors.

So that was proof

that there is

A receptor protein

in the brain

That combined to the thc

like a key in a lock.

It was very exciting, because

what that meant to us was,

We had a tool that could be

used for studying,

And other researchers

could use it, as well.

And people could study where

the receptor was in the brain.

Howlett and other

scientists found the receptors

In the hippocampus,

which forms memories;

The cerebellum,

which controls movement;

And the frontal cortex,

where we think.

Here were these

receptors that this chemical

Produced by a plant

out in the world

Just so happened to have

The precise combination

to unlock.

What an extraordinary thing

that is.

Is that why that

receptor network existed,

So that people could get high?

We don't have those receptors

Just so that people can get high

smoking pot.

Receptors are developed

In neurons so that

they can communicate

With a chemical

that the body makes.

So that was the logic

behind going in

And trying to extract

a compound in the brain

That would act just like

marijuana did.

And in 1992,

proof came that the brain

Does make a compound

very much like thc.

It was discovered by none other

than raphael mechoulam,

Who named it anandamide.

We call it "the brain's own

marijuana" because the compound

That is made by the brain --

anandamide --

Shares all the properties,

In terms of at the receptor

level and cellular level,

That thc has.

It turns out

that when anandamide

Is released in the brain,

like marijuana,

It affects such basic things as

appetite, pain, and memory.

And it plays a critical role

In a sometimes underappreciated

mental function --

Forgetting.

When I first heard that,

It didn't seem adaptive to me,

to have a drug for forgetting.

Memory, we understand,

has great survival utility.

You know, you learn that that's

a poisonous mushroom

Or that's a dangerous animal,

And you stay away

and you remember that.

But why would forgetting

be adaptive?

And I asked mechoulam

this question.

And he said, "well, tell me,

do you really want to remember

All the faces you saw

on the subway this morning?"

Forgetting well is almost

As important

as remembering well.

Forgetting is about editing.

It's about taking the flood,

the ocean

Of sense information

coming at you

And forgetting everything

but what's important.

So life is not just about

accumulating new memories.

Memory can cripple us, too.

You have soldiers

Returning from war zones,

That are traumatized

by experiences

That in effect

they can't unlearn.

So if you could help them

unlearn that --

Essentially, a productive

kind of forgetting,

Either with a drug

or some other kind of regime --

That would be

incredibly useful.

And that's exactly

What aron lichtman

is trying to do.

He's studying how mice

remember -- and forget.

First, he trains them to find

an underwater platform.

The mice

are natural swimmers,

But they're looking

for a way out.

They swim all around

the perimeter of the tank.

They're swimming, swimming,

swimming.

Sometimes they bump

into the platform by mistake

And they climb onto it.

Other times,

they never find it.

So at this point,

It's been at it

for a while.

And the experimenter

has to gently guide them to it

Or place them on the platform.

Then, lichtman takes

the platform away.

A normal mouse quickly realizes

the platform is gone.

But a mouse whose anandamide

receptors have been blocked

Is unable to forget.

They don't learn

To give up.

They keep on looking

for that platform,

Even though it's gone.

Scientists like

lichtman hope

That learning how to regulate

anandamide may one day

Lead to treatments

for people

Who are haunted

by their memories.

If they can elevate

Naturally occurring anandamide

in humans,

We might be able to have

whole new

Therapeutic targets to treat

post-traumatic stress syndrome.

By using a plant

that has been around

For thousands of years,

we discovered

A new physiological system

of immense importance.

We wouldn't have been able

to get there

If we had not looked

at a plant.

These plants are

constantly undergoing

This revision

and this re-revision

In our cultural imagination,

Depending on what uses

they're playing for us.

Are they demons or are they,

you know, saviors?

We see it with the apple,

Which went from evil

to wholesome to evil.

And we see it with marijuana,

which also has had

These periods of evil

and this period

Of being celebrated

by the counterculture.

Is it more uplifting

or more relaxing

For your body

that you're after?

Uplifting.

One place that's well known

For celebrating cannabis

is amsterdam.

We have the shiva,

which is lovely.

Though marijuana is

not fully legal here,

It can be legally sold

and smoked

In licensed coffee shops,

Drawing tourists

from around the world.

Fantastic,

let's do that for 10.

Wonderful.

You can walk

down the street

And catch the whiff

Of marijuana smoke

coming out of bars --

"cafes," as they're called --

And you can choose exactly

What kind of experience

you want.

That's milder,

more dreamy.

I think just

the bud.

Thank you.

Okay, bye.

Enjoy.

You look at the scene

and you marvel at it.

It is no different than people

sitting around,

Enjoying their glass of wine

or cigarettes.

Amsterdam even has

special garden shops

For cannabis growers.

You repot it

into a bigger pot.

You put this one

straight in the pot.

You don't

have to break it or --

Its owner,

tim a'court,

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